1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a medical X-ray inspection apparatus, and particularly to an apparatus for smoothly piling and containing therein sheet-like record carriers on which information has been recorded.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The form of use of an X-ray exposure apparatus according to the prior art will first be explained and the problems peculiar to the prior art with respect to the form of use newly required will also be described. FIGS. 1 to 5 of the accompanying drawings show the apparatus according to the prior art. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 designates a sheet film exposure apparatus body, reference numeral 2 denotes a supply magazine for containing unphotographed sheet films 3 therein, reference numeral 4 designates the film takeout port of the supply magazine, reference numeral 5 denotes a receive magazine for containing photographed sheet films 6 therein, reference numeral 7 designates the film receiving port of the receive magazine, reference numerals 8-12 denote rollers for feeding sheet films, and reference numerals 13 and 14 designate guide plates for guiding sheet films. Reference characters 15a and 15b denote intensifying screens constituting an exposure portion. The intensifying screens 15a and 15b together form an exposure stage. In FIG. 1, the unphotographed sheet films 3 contained in the supply magazine 2 are fed one by one through the film take-out port 4 by a mechanism, not shown, and are nipped between the rollers 8 and 9 rotated in the direction of arrow, whereby they are conveyed to between the intensifying screens 15a and 15b. By a mechanism, not shown, the intensifying screens 15a and 15b bring a sheet film 3' into intimate contact therewith and photography is effected there. After completion of the photography, the intensifying screens 15a and 15b release the sheet film 3' out of the intimate contact and the photographed sheet film is conveyed through the film receiving port 7 into the receive magazine 5 by rotation of the rollers 10, 11 and 12.
As the photographing method using the sheet film exposure apparatus shown in FIG. 1, there is a case where, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, photography is effected with a photographing surface fixed horizontally or vertically with respect to the floor surface, or a case where, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the sheet film exposure apparatus is mounted on an arm 18 rotatable about a point A and photography is effected while the sheet film exposure apparatus is being rotatively moved to the range of 90.degree. which is the dots-and-dash line position in FIG. 5. Here, reference numeral 17 designates an X-ray tube ball, and M denotes an examinee, and FIG. 5 shows a side view of the FIG. 4 arrangement. In such a conventional photographing method, the receiving port 7 of the receive magazine never faces the floor surface side. Accordingly, there could be no condition in which new photographed sheet 6 had to be contained against the gravity of the photographed sheet films 6 already contained in the receive magazine 5.
In the conventional photographing method as described above, there is the following requirement imposed upon the photographed film containing mechanism of the sheet film exposure apparatus. That is, the requirement is that the entry of a photographed sheet film 6 newly coming into the receive magazine 5 be not hindered by curling of the photographed sheet films 6 already contained in the receive magazine 5 and falling of the already contained photographed sheet films 6 caused when the receive magazine 5 is disposed vertically relative to the floor surface.
Conventional photographed film containing mechanisms which meet such requirement are disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publications Nos. 10551/1972 and 22380/1979.
Recently, with the advance of the photographing technique and in pursuit of images of higher diagnostic power, studies have been continued on an apparatus as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 of the accompanying drawings wherein a sheet film exposure apparatus is mounted on an arm 19 and slidden in the direction of arrow indicated in FIG. 6 and also rotated about the point B of FIG. 7, thereby enabling photography to be accomplished at any angle. Here, reference numeral 17 designates an X-ray tube ball, and M denotes an examinee, and FIG. 7 shows a side view of the FIG. 6 arrangement. In the case of this photographing method, considering the conditions in which the receive magazine 5 is placed, as shown in FIG. 8 of the accompanying drawings, there are the horizontal position D to the vertical position E in which the film receiving port 7 faces the ceiling surface and further, the upside down position G in which the film receiving port 7 faces the floor surface. Particularly, in the upside down position G, the already contained photographed sheet films 6 fall downwardly from gravity and therefore, the movement path of the photographed sheet film 6 to be contained next is hindered. Accordingly, the photographed film containing mechanisms according to the prior art cannot cope with this problem and suffers from a difficulty that the photographed sheet film 6 cannot fully enter the receive magazine 5.